Proud of contribution of Indian diaspora: Pranab

Dhaka: Interacting with members of the Indian diaspora in Bangladesh, visiting Indian President Pranab Mukherjee Monday said Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) were the "most welcomed guests" all over the world.

Praising the Indian diaspora in Bangladesh, which numbers around 10,000, for their contribution to their adopted country and to India, Mukherjee said he was proud of the NRIs and to their commitment to the welfare of their adopted countries.

The meeting with the Indian diaspora was the first such initiative by a visiting Indian president in the country.

"NRIs are the most welcomed guests all over the world," said Mukherjee, adding that the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas is held to "recognize the contribution of the NRIs".

"They represent Indian culture, traditions and the eternal message of India."

He also praised the remittances by the Indian diaspora, saying it was a most important contribution.

Mukherjee said relations between India and Bangladesh have received "broad consensus among the political spectrum of India", as four Indian MPs of different parties were present in the audience.

Sitaram Yechury of the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M), Mukul Roy of Trinamool Congress, Bhubaneshwar Kalita of the Congress and Chandan Mitra of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) were in the gathering. They are part of the delegation accompanying the president.

"In a democratic system there are divergent views, but some issues are there on which we work together... on some issues, we have consensus... close relations with neighbours is one of them," said the president.